Cinema and Popcorn

1.  ISABELLE HUPPERT Finally she's getting the honors she deserves for her exceptional career and for being one of the most celebrated actresses in the whole world. Isabelle Huppert's 2016 brought her the recognition as one of the best actresses alive thanks to her Oscary acting turn in Elle (a true bravura performance!) and her brilliant and complex performance in Things to Come . With last year's Valley of Love  (for which she received another César Award nomination) being released this year in USA and the rest of the world in general, it worked as a kind of "bonus points". Right now, she's swiping some big awards from Oscar favorites Natalie Portman ( Jackie ) and Emma Stone ( La La Land ) and, in spite of being passed by the actors guild when SAG Award nominees were announced, truth is she stills in the running for that Academy Award for Best Actress - and with or without nomination or win, no one can deny this French actress is a true acting goddess...

BEST PICTURE La La Land brought some welcome fresh air to 2016 and to the musical genre in general and emerged as the Best Picture front-runner early in Venice Film Festival... the AMPAS members love a good musical and once you see this one it is impossible to leave the theatre without a smile on your face and since the team behind La La Land is campaigning heavily - a lock in Best Picture race. Moonlight is one of the most well-reviewed movie of the year and one of the most well-executed ones, a perfect balance between amazing acting, effective storytelling, visual beauty and technical perfectionism that elevates the story of Chiron, the gay black kid turned into a man. Oscar voters go for gay (male) movies once in a while and this one appeals to the indie community and... to the heart! Kenneth Lonergan's Sundance hit Manchester by the Sea benefits from heroic acting turns, a beautiful screenplay and a sensitive direction, making this one of the most touching movies of the...

No quote today, only: MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!!

Actors choosed their favorites and we got some atrocious snubs like Annette Bening for 20th Century Women , Tom Hanks for Sully (but that's ok since Best Leading Actor lineup is just awesome), Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Michael Shannon both for Nocturnal Animals and Janelle Monae for Hidden Figures (who I was expecting to get nominated over Octavia Spencer ). Thumbs up for Captain Fantastic who scored Best Leading Actor for Viggo Mortensen and for Ensemble Cast - who knows it turns into a surprise Oscar threat if it manages to get the support of Producers Guild and Writers Guild??? That would be delicious! Sad 20th Century Women scored 0 nods, since it deserved (at least) to get nominated for Ensemble - it scores some of the finest performances of its cast members. And I still thinking about Nocturnal Animals... it scored 0! Is Tom Ford's latest a weaker Oscar player than I think? Now, just check the SAG Award 2017 nominees list here: OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A...

The Globes strike again with some major surprises (and snubs!) between the nominees, but the main lesson we can get from this list is: no matter you hate or love Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge is a major awards player who souldn't ignore while predicting Oscar nominations. Still wondering how Café Society , Hail, Caesar! , Love & Friendship (Kate Beckinsale OMG!) or Silence got totally snubed... So, here's the Golden Globes 2017 nominees list with my predicted winners marked with a * BEST MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA Hacksaw Ridge Hell or High Water Lion Manchester by the Sea Moonlight * BEST MOTION PICTURE - COMEDY OR MUSICAL 20th Century Women Deadpool La La Land * Florence Foster Jenkins Sing Street BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea * Joel Edgerton – Loving Andrew Garfield – Hacksaw Ridge Viggo Mortensen –   Captain Fantastic Denzel Washington – Fences BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRES...

You know what's real fun? Predicting the Golden Globes. What makes this nominees predictions that fun? Well, you have to predict in Comedy or Musical and Drama categories and you can take it more personal because that's the essence of the globes: they go for the hottest stars of the moment (and I don't mean "hot" in the the sexy way but more in the "trendy" one). The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) often goes after the stars they want to nominate and major box-office hits, often snubing art-house independent productions (but it can happen if the movie is too good to ignore, of course!). So, here are my Golden Globes 2017 nominees predictions (Best Original Song not included): BE ST MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA Fences Hacksaw Ridge Manchester by the Sea The Jungle Book Silence The #6 : Jackie BEST ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA Casey Affleck for Manchester by the Sea Jake Gyllenhaal for Nocturnal Animals Tom Hanks fo...